Adjusting Mechanism and Adjusting Method Thereof

ABSTRACT

An adjusting mechanism adjusts a boat to be parallel to a furnace having an opening and a receiving space, which has a first symmetrical line. When the boat having a second symmetrical line is inserted into the space, a first gap area is formed between sidewalls of the space and the boat. The mechanism includes an adjusting element and an adjusting tool, which is removably disposed in the opening and has a wide part, a narrow part and a through hole. The narrow part blocks the opening. When the boat is inserted into the space, a second gap area smaller than the first gap area is formed between the sidewalls of the boat and the through hole at the narrow part. The adjusting element adjusts the first and second symmetrical lines to be parallel to each other according to the second gap area.

This application is a divisional application of co-pending U.S.application Ser. No. 11/318,495, filed Dec. 28, 2005.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates in general to an adjusting mechanism and anadjusting method thereof, and more particularly to an adjustingmechanism using an adjusting tool to reduce a gap area between a boatand a furnace such that the boat in the furnace is parallel to thefurnace, and an adjusting method thereof.

2. Description of the Related Art

In semiconductor manufacturing processes, a furnace is an importantapparatus. The furnace provides a high-temperature environment forwafers such that various semiconductor manufacturing processes, such asoxidation, diffusion, doping, pre-deposition, drive-in, annealing,post-implantation annealing, heat treatment, reflow or high-temperaturechemical vapor deposition (CVD), may be performed on the wafers.

The conventional furnace has a receiving space and an opening. Thereceiving space provides an airtight high-temperature environment.Several wafers are carried on a boat. The semiconductor manufacturingprocesses can be performed after the boat enters the receiving spacethrough the opening. At this time, the furnace is heated such that thetemperature rises to the desired temperature, and the boat is rotatedsuch that the wafers are heated evenly.

However, if the boat is not parallel to the furnace, the boat maycollide with an inner wall of the furnace to produce particles when theboat is rotated or moved into or out of the furnace. In a seriouscondition, the boat or the furnace may be damaged. In the semiconductormanufacturing processes, the tiny particles contaminate the wafer toproduce defects in the wafer because the line width of the circuit inthe wafer is very tiny.

Thus, it is an important subject of the invention to provide a method ofensuring the boat to be parallel to the furnace and thus solving theabove-mentioned problem.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide an adjustingmechanism using an adjusting tool for reducing a gap area between a boatand a furnace, and an adjusting method thereof. Thus, it is easier toadjust the boat in the furnace to be parallel to the furnace accordingto the gap area between the boat and the furnace. Consequently, it ispossible to prevent the boat from colliding with the furnace when theboat is rotated or moved into and out of the furnace, and thus preventthe boat or the furnace from being damaged and prevent the particles,which contaminate the wafer and cause defects in the wafer, from beingproduced at the collision.

The invention achieves the above-identified object by providing anadjusting mechanism for adjusting a boat in a furnace to be parallel tothe furnace. The furnace has a receiving space and an opening. Thereceiving space has a first symmetrical line. The boat has a secondsymmetrical line. A first gap area is formed between a sidewall of thereceiving space and a sidewall of the boat when the boat is insertedinto the receiving space through the opening. The adjusting mechanismincludes an adjusting tool and an adjusting element. The adjusting toolis removably disposed at the opening and has a wide part, a narrow partand a through hole formed from the wide part to the narrow part. Thenarrow part blocks the opening such that the wide part is exposed out ofthe opening. A second gap area smaller than the first gap area is formedbetween a sidewall of the through hole at the narrow part and thesidewall of the boat when the boat is inserted into the receiving spacethrough the through hole and the opening. The adjusting element adjuststhe first symmetrical line and the second symmetrical line to beparallel to each other according to the second gap area.

The invention also achieves the above-identified object by providing anadjusting method of adjusting a boat in a furnace to be parallel to thefurnace. The furnace has an opening, a receiving space and a firstsymmetrical line. The boat has a second symmetrical line, a first gaparea being formed between a sidewall of the receiving space and asidewall of the boat when the boat is inserted into the receiving spacethrough the opening. The adjusting method includes the steps of:providing an adjusting tool, which has a wide part, a narrow part and athrough hole formed from the wide part to the narrow part; using thenarrow part to block the opening such that the wide part is exposed outof the opening; inserting the boat into the receiving space through thethrough hole and the opening to form a second gap area, which is smallerthan the first gap area and located between the sidewall of the boat anda sidewall of the through hole at the narrow part; and adjusting thefirst symmetrical line and the second symmetrical line to be parallel toeach other according to the second gap area.

The invention further achieves the above-identified object by providinga tool including a wide part and a narrow part. The narrow part isconnected to the wide part. A through hole passing through the wide partand the narrow part is formed from the wide part to the narrow part. Thetool has a width gradually decreasing from the wide part to the narrowpart.

Other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent from the following detailed description of the preferred butnon-limiting embodiments. The following description is made withreference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a pictorial view showing an adjusting mechanism, a furnaceand a boat according to a preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 1B is a schematic side view showing the adjusting mechanism, thefurnace and the boat of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 1C is a cross-sectional view showing an adjusting tool taken alonga line 1C-1C′ of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 1D is a cross-sectional view showing the adjusting tool taken alonga line 1D-1D′ of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 2A is a pictorial view showing a state when the adjusting tool ofFIG. 1A blocks an opening.

FIG. 2B is a schematic side view showing the adjusting mechanism, thefurnace and the boat of FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3A is a pictorial view showing a state when the boat of FIG. 2Apasses through the opening and a through hole.

FIG. 3B is a schematic side view showing the adjusting mechanism, thefurnace and the boat of FIG. 3A.

FIG. 3C is a schematic top view showing a sidewall of the boat, which isnot parallel to a sidewall of the furnace of FIG. 3A.

FIG. 3D is a schematic top view showing the sidewall of the boat and thesidewall of the furnace of FIG. 3C after the adjustment.

FIG. 4A is a pictorial view showing the boat and the furnace of FIG.

3A after the adjustment.

FIG. 4B is a schematic side view showing the adjusting element, thefurnace and the boat of FIG. 4A.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing an adjusting method according to theinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION First Embodiment

FIG. 1A is a pictorial view showing an adjusting mechanism, a furnaceand a boat according to a preferred embodiment of the invention. FIG. 1Bis a schematic side view showing the adjusting mechanism, the furnaceand the boat of FIG. 1A. Referring to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the adjustingmechanism 30 adjusts a boat 20 in a furnace 10 to be parallel to thefurnace 10. The furnace 10 has a receiving space 13 and an opening 11.The receiving space 13 has a first symmetrical line L13. The boat 20 hasa second symmetrical line L20. The adjusting mechanism 30 includes anadjusting tool 31 and an adjusting element 32. The adjusting tool 31 isremovably disposed at the opening 11 and has a wide part 311, a narrowpart 312 and a through hole 313 formed from the wide part 311 to thenarrow part 312. The adjusting tool 31 of FIG. 1B is located outside theopening 11. The narrow part 312 may block the opening 11 such that thewide part 311 is exposed out of the opening 11. The adjusting tool 31can reduce the gap area between the boat 20 and the receiving space 13.Thus, using the adjusting element 32 can easily adjust the firstsymmetrical line L13 and the second symmetrical line L20 to be parallelto each other.

As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the adjusting tool 31 of this embodiment isa hollow funnel-like structure. The width of the adjusting tool 31gradually decreases from the wide part 311 to the narrow part 312. Thewidth W312 of the narrow part 312 is smaller than the width W11 of theopening 11, and the width W311 of the wide part 311 is greater than thewidth W11 of the opening 11. As shown in FIG. 1B, a sidewall 313 a ofthe through hole 313 is parallel to a sidewall 31 a of the adjustingtool 31, and a profile of the sidewall 313 a of the through hole 313corresponds to a profile of the sidewall 31 a of the adjusting tool 31.

FIG. 1C is a cross-sectional view showing an adjusting tool taken alonga line 1C-1C′ of FIG. 1A. FIG. 1D is a cross-sectional view showing theadjusting tool taken along a line 1D-1D′ of FIG. 1A. As shown in FIG.1C, the wide part 311 has a first annular cross section C311perpendicular to the second symmetrical line L20. The first annularcross section C311 has substantially the same thickness in directionsperpendicular to the second symmetrical line L20. As shown in FIG. 1 D,the narrow part 312 has a second annular cross section C312perpendicular to the second symmetrical line L20. The second annularcross section C312 has substantially the same thickness in directionsperpendicular to the second symmetrical line L20. In fact, the opening11 is a circular opening, the first annular cross section C311 is afirst circular cross section and the second annular cross section C312is a second circular cross section. Furthermore, the thickness D311 ofthe first annular cross section C311 substantially equals the thicknessD312 of the second annular cross section C312.

As shown in FIG. 2B, when the boat 20 is located outside the opening 11of the furnace 10, a first gap area D1 is formed between a sidewall 22of the boat 20 and an extension line of a sidewall 12 of the receivingspace 13.

FIG. 2A is a pictorial view showing a state when the adjusting tool ofFIG. 1A blocks an opening. FIG. 2B is a schematic side view showing theadjusting mechanism, the furnace and the boat of FIG. 2A. As shown inFIGS. 2A and 2B, when the adjusting tool 31 blocks the opening 11, thenarrow part 312 is located inside the receiving space 13 and the widepart 311 is located outside the opening 11.

FIG. 3A is a pictorial view showing a state when the boat of FIG. 2Apasses through the opening and a through hole. FIG. 3B is a schematicside view showing the adjusting mechanism, the furnace and the boat ofFIG. 3A. FIG. 3C is a schematic top view showing the sidewall of theboat, which is not parallel to the sidewall of the furnace of FIG. 3A.FIG. 3D is a schematic top view showing the sidewall of the boat and thesidewall of the furnace of FIG. 3C after the adjustment. When the boat20 is inserted into the receiving space 13 through the through hole 313and the opening 11, a second gap area D2 smaller than the first gap areaD1 is formed between the sidewall 22 of the boat 20 and the sidewall 313a of the through hole 313 at the narrow part 312. As shown in FIG. 3C,when the boat 20 tilts in the furnace 10, the second gap area D2 hasdifferent widths in various directions. The user can adjust the boat 20according to the second gap area D2 and the adjusting element 32. Theadjusting element 32 includes a moving part and a fixing part. In thisembodiment, the moving part is a set screw 321, and the fixing part is afixing screw 322. The user can rotate the set screw 321 to adjust thebevel of the boat 20 relative to the furnace 10, such that the secondgap area D2 of FIG. 3C has the same width in various directions, asshown in FIG. 3D. When the second gap area D2 has the same width in alldirections, the first symmetrical line L13 and the second symmetricalline L20 are parallel to each other. The fixing screw 322 can positionthe boat 20 to prevent the boat 20 from being biased after theadjustment.

FIG. 4A is a pictorial view showing the boat and the furnace of FIG. 3Aafter the adjustment. FIG. 4B is a schematic side view showing theadjusting element, the furnace and the boat of FIG. 4A. As shown inFIGS. 4A and 4B, the user detaches the adjusting tool 31 of FIG. 3Aafter the adjustment. At this time, the boat 20 after being adjusted isinserted into the receiving space 13 of the furnace 10. Because thefirst symmetrical line L13 is parallel to the second symmetrical lineL20, no friction between the boat 20 and the sidewall 12 of the furnace10 will occur.

Although the furnace of the above-mentioned embodiment is a verticalfurnace, the furnace of the invention may also be a horizontal furnace.Any modification, which uses an adjusting tool to reduce the gap areabetween the boat and the furnace and thus to achieve the object ofeasily adjusting the boat in the furnace to be parallel to the furnace,may be regarded as falling within the scope of the invention.

Second Embodiment

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing an adjusting method according to a secondembodiment of the invention. Herein, the adjusting mechanism may be theadjusting mechanism of the above-mentioned embodiment or themodification thereof. In this embodiment, descriptions are madeaccording to the adjusting mechanism 30 of the first embodiment, and thestructures of the furnace 10 and the boat 20 of the second embodimentare the same as those of the first embodiment. Thus, the same symbolsare used in the second embodiment, and detailed descriptions of thesymbols will be omitted.

As shown in FIGS. 5, 1A and 1B, an adjusting tool 31 is provided in stepS1. The adjusting tool 31 has a wide part 311, a narrow part 312 and athrough hole 313 formed from the wide part 311 to the narrow part 312.

In step S2, as shown in FIGS. 5, 2A and 2B, the narrow part 312 blocksthe opening 11 such that the wide part 311 is exposed out of the opening11.

In step S3, as shown in FIGS. 5, 3A and 3B, the boat 20 is inserted intothe receiving space 13 through the through hole 313 and the opening 11.A second gap area D2 smaller than the first gap area D1 is formedbetween the sidewall 22 of the boat 20 and the sidewall 313 a of thethrough hole 313 at the narrow part 312.

Next, step S4 adjusts the first symmetrical line L13 and the secondsymmetrical line L20 to be parallel to each other according to thesecond gap area D2.

In step S4, the furnace 10 can be fixed while the boat 20 is adjustedsuch that the second gap D2 of FIG. 3C has the same width in alldirections, as shown in FIG. 3D. When the second gap area D2 has thesame width in all directions, the first symmetrical line L13 and thesecond symmetrical line L20 are parallel to each other. In addition, theboat 20 can be fixed after the adjustment, and then the adjusting tool31 may be detached.

The adjusting mechanism and the adjusting method thereof according tothe embodiments of the invention utilize an adjusting tool to reduce thegap area between the boat and the furnace. Thus, it is easier to adjustthe boat in the furnace to be parallel to the furnace according to thegap area between the boat and the furnace. Consequently, it is possibleto prevent the boat from colliding with the furnace when the boat isrotated or moved into and out of the furnace, and thus prevent the boator the furnace from being damaged and prevent the particles, whichcontaminate the wafer and cause defects in the wafer, from beingproduced at the collision.

While the invention has been described by way of examples and in termsof preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention isnot limited thereto. On the contrary, it is intended to cover variousmodifications and similar arrangements and procedures, and the scope ofthe appended claims therefore should be accorded the broadestinterpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similararrangements and procedures.

1. An adjusting method of adjusting a boat in a furnace to be parallelto the furnace, the furnace having an opening, a receiving space and afirst symmetrical line, the boat having a second symmetrical line, afirst gap area being formed between a sidewall of the receiving spaceand a sidewall of the boat when the boat is inserted into the receivingspace through the opening, the adjusting method comprising the steps of:providing an adjusting tool, which has a wide part, a narrow part and athrough hole formed from the wide part to the narrow part; using thenarrow part to block the opening such that the wide part is exposed outof the opening; inserting the boat into the receiving space through thethrough hole and the opening to form a second gap area, which is smallerthan the first gap area and located between the sidewall of the boat anda sidewall of the through hole at the narrow part; and adjusting thefirst symmetrical line and the second symmetrical line to be parallel toeach other according to the second gap area.
 2. The method according toclaim 1, wherein the wide part and the narrow part form a one-piecemolded structure.
 3. The method according to claim 1, wherein theadjusting tool has a hollow funnel-like structure, a width of theadjusting tool gradually decreases from the wide part to the narrowpart, a width of the narrow part is smaller than a width of the opening,and a width of the wide part is greater than the width of the opening.4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the sidewall of the throughhole is parallel to a sidewall of the adjusting tool, and a profile ofthe sidewall of the through hole corresponds to a profile of thesidewall of the adjusting tool.
 5. The method according to claim 1,wherein the wide part has a first annular cross section perpendicular tothe second symmetrical line, the narrow part has a second annular crosssection perpendicular to the second symmetrical line, and a thickness ofthe first annular cross section substantially equals a thickness of thesecond annular cross section.
 6. The method according to claim 5,wherein the first annular cross section has substantially the samethickness in directions perpendicular to the second symmetrical line. 7.The method according to claim 5, wherein the second annular crosssection has substantially the same thickness in directions perpendicularto the second symmetrical line.
 8. The method according to claim 5,wherein the opening is a circular opening, the first annular crosssection is a first circular cross section and the second annular crosssection is a second circular cross section.
 9. The method according toclaim 1, wherein the step of adjusting the first symmetrical line andthe second symmetrical line to be parallel to each other comprises:fixing the furnace and adjusting the boat such that the firstsymmetrical line and the second symmetrical line are parallel to eachother.
 10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the step ofadjusting the first symmetrical line and the second symmetrical line tobe parallel to each other further comprises fixing the boat after theboat is adjusted.
 11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the stepof adjusting the first symmetrical line and the second symmetrical lineto be parallel to each other further comprises detaching the adjustingtool after the boat is fixed.